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Rio de Janeiro looks spectacular as you fly in. Surrounded by mountains and built among huge granite boulders with sweeping bays and long beaches. The plane had to circle a bit so we had plenty time to enjoy the view........... well Mr window seat did anyway.
Only two full days three nights here so naturally limited to what we could see. Of course we went up Sugar Loaf ( not referred to as a mountain anymore for the simple reason that it isn't one) and enjoyed the spectacular views of the city and the bays. Also went up Corcovado to view Christ the Redeemer. An art deco sculpture, it was built by a Brazilian engineer and French sculpter and chosen as the result of a competition. It was built after the separation of the Church from the State in order to assert the continuing authority of the Catholic church.........among other reasons. It certainly is huge ie 100 ft tall, not including the pedestal and with a 30 meter arm span. It can be seen from all over the city of course and faces East which is very useful for people out and about without much sense of direction! It reminded us of the angel of the north.
We also walked by Ipanema beach and drove the length of Copacabana. Both busy and looked fun if you don't mind spending the day with hundreds of other tourists and thousands of locals. Ipanema is a bit more up market. It is marked into sections by numbered life guard stations each section having apparently developed it's own character eg. No 9 likes to think it attracts the cute and wealthy while another station further down is known for gays and lesbians. Could be a bit tricky if you didn't know the rules. Dad and I decided just to keep going..........seemed best.
In the city we visited a couple of churches .........yes, again! One was of particular interest as it was a cathedral of very modern design like a pyramid, vast inside with 4 stained glass windows made in strips from the very top to the base on each quarter. It's 96 metres tall and designed by one Edgar Fonceca built from 1964 to 1979. It took so long as it had to be financed by the people as it went along. It can take a congregation of 20,000. Quite a building.
And lastly we had lunch yesterday in a great building in the middle of town called Columbo. The food was good but the cafe/restaurant was I itself worth a visit. Built to resemble Paris and London cafe scene it looks a sort of art deco design with a galleried upstairs and floor to ceiling mirrors. Some lovely floor tiles and white table cloths and silver coffee pots. Loved it. It used to be the haunt of the intelligentsia early last century but has to put up with mere tourists now.
So that's it for now. Will continue in a couple of days.
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Peter and Vicky Really enjoying reading your blog Dad has the map out seeing where you are. Gracie and Joe loved the Amazon pictures but slightly shocked you caught, cooked and ate Pirana!